RBC has released survey results that show 78% of British Columbians agree it is a buyers market for residential real estate. That is way above the national average of 65% of Canadians.
Among those planning to buy a home, 27% said they would do so because their current home didn’t meet their needs. Almost 25% of respondents cited attractive housing prices as being an incentive for them to look for a home; 23% said they wanted to buy a bigger home.
Some people find this thinking difficult to understand. The reality is when buyers are financially and emotionally ready they will start to look. Throw in the fact the average price of has fallen 14.2% year-over-year and it makes sense to buy. Might homes be cheaper in a few months? Perhaps. But if a buyer can find a home that suits their needs at a price they can afford then what’s the problem?
Well then, you could argue it is a bad time to be selling. No, if you have been in your home for more than a couple of years you have seen your home go up in value from what you paid for it. Now is a great time to move up.
If you have bought a place in the past year and are already thinking of selling it – make sure you can afford to do so! What do I mean? If you bought a place with 5% down and have a mortgage of, say $300,000. If similar units are now selling for $270,000 then you are, as they say, “underwater” or “upside down” or more simply put “in negative equity”. Are you prepared to pay the lender the $30,000 difference? You might be better off staying where you are at.
When prices were going to the moon some people thought it would never end. It is the same thing with falling prices. This too shall come to pass.
